RSI / Carpal Tunnel Syndrome - Has anyone been diagnosed with it ?

[chloemummy]

I was diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome at the end of 2007. I wondered if there were other mothers who have been diagnosed with the condition and how do you manage it? I am in so much pain in my arms and shoulders at the minute that I dont know what to do. Also the only thing my employer has done is get me an ergonomic keyboard... The condition is getting worse and I am unsure of whether to tell my employer as in this finanical climate I dont want to lose my job? Any support or advice would be welcome.

Thanks in advance.

My mum had Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. She worked as a cook in a kitchen and it really affected her - the constant chopping, peeling of things.

She had lots of cortizone injections which in the end stopped working, so she had both hands operated on (at different times) which made everything easier for her.

Maybe you could visit your GP and ask what the waiting period is to have them operated on or if you have private insurance get them done now?

I had this - if it's true carpal tunnel and you've had it since 2007, then you are probably best having surgery which is unpleasant but gives instant releif from symptoms. If you ignore it or try & live with it it can cause irreparable nerve damage in your wrist and consequent loss of strength in your hand. I say, if it's true carpal tunnel as I thought that only affected the hands/fingers (and specific fingers at that) rather than the arms & shoulders, though that might referred pain. Can you get your doctor to refer you to a specialist?

Hi Chloemummy I have just been referred to a rhumatologist with suspected carpel tunnel & raynaulds. I work on a computer all day and most the time at the moment i really struggle. I feel like i am telling my hand/fingers to do something but they really do not want to do it. On minute my hands are cold & white (raynaulds)and then they are red,burning and fingers look like sausages (carpel). I also have a nasty habit of sleeping with my hand under pillow so i am waking up at night with a cold numb blue arm.

Atm my wrists are really weak but i only have 3 weeks to wait for my rhemy apt thank goodness. I cant imagine suffering as long as you. Hope you get it sorted soon.

I had RSI back in 1996. I was in a call centre and ended up being off sick for over 6 months. I got to the stage where I couldn't do anything at all with my hands.

I saw a rheumatologist privately and had private physiotherapy. It took several years before I was properly well and it does come back in times of stress. My physio says that the pain has a memory and having suffered from it, I can do something that another person would get away with (sitting badly at the pc) and set it off again.

You really shouldn't still be using a keyboard if you are in that much pain- you will do yourself damage.

I've had RSI twice, and in my case it was very much stress related. I gradually became more pressurised and unhappy at work, and the more tired and worried I got, the worse it got. The only thing that helped was to stop completely for a while to get things in perspective and stop doing whatever aggravated it. Physio really helped, as did learning how to sit at my desk, taking regular breaks, etc.

You should check on your employment rights - you are entitled to sick leave. As it stands it sounds like all the stress you're under is just making it worse. See your GP and talk to your employer openly about it. Try to get a break from, however short, from work to relax and take stock, and seek professional help - pain management clinics can be very useful so ask you GP about that. And there must be a charity or support group of some kind out there that can advise you and give you some support.

I was OK in the end and can still type without much pain, but both times the RSI made me realise I was unhappy with my job/life/situation and both times I ended up leaving and doing other jobs that suited me better. I believe my recovery was very much related to taking charge of the situation, getting support and making the necessary changes. I hope you find a solution and feel better soon. Good luck!

Thank you all for your messages. I talked to my employer today and they are having a management meeting tomorrow to see what can be done. I confirmed in writing what I wanted them to do.

Make a proper ergonomic assessment. I asked if they were able to pay for any treatment to help me and gave them details of the RSI climic in Harley Street.

I also said I had located a specialist in this conditionDr Richard Pearson. I suggested if they paid for me to go and see this specialist then he would be able to give them advise to the best way forward.

Snorkle have you had the surgery? I have been to a rheumatologist who diagnosed carpal tunnel, I have had the nerve conduction tests.

Elvislives I agree with you. I should not be using akeyboard... I am a lone parent so I dont want to take time off work as I am the only provider and I am scared of the consequence.

KHS thank you for your support. I agree I am getting more and more stressed about the situation. See what happens tomorrow. sick leave is 2 weeks per year or their discretion. then tehy put you on statutory. Sorry cant type anymore as arms hurting.

My husband has just had his carpal tunnel operated on 5 weeks ago after 2 years of symptoms. He was in pretty severe discomfort, mostly at night where he would wake up with pins and needles or a very dead painful hand.
His nerve conduction test showed mod to severe compression on the nerve so only an operation was really going to help.
He chose a plastic surgeon who specialises in hands to operate. It has been straightforward though he's complained a lot of pain/sensitivity post op. He shouldn't lift more than a kilo for 6 wks and he has been doing more than that. This week he's gone fishing for 5 days and I am sure the surgeon didn't have that in mind! Anyway at least the CT is fixed. Good luck with your decision,. Tilba x

Yes I had the surgery before xmas (just one hand). The pins and needles stops instantly, but I did find the surgery itself and the recovery more painful than I expected. I still have some minor scar pain which I'm told is normal for up to 6 months. I think my hand strength is about back to normal now.

Snorkle, did you get pain in your upper arms? What signs and symptoms did you get apart from the pins and needles and shooting pain up your arms? Did you carry on working or did you have to stop. Obviously you stopped after the surgery. They say you take a couple of weeks off - think that is very optimistic?

I have CTS and have done on and off mildly since DS1 was born 5yrs ago (CTS was horrific while pregnant with him). It has recently got alot worse. I could wake every hour at night with severe pain and/or pins and needles in my hands. Splints help a bit. Driving, ironing and pushing buggy exacerbate it. Steroid injecton has helped alot.I see a surgeon next week...although not keen on operation at the moment as the steroid injection seems to have helped a good bit.

I am finding my hands are weaker than normal and keep dropping things. My sensation of temperature has changed too in my fingers.

I haven't had nerve conduction tests yet but think that is what the surgeon will suggest.

Symptoms were initially pins & needles & dead feeling at night only. Actually come to think of it I used to get shoulder pain then too, but that may have been unrelated and stopped when I reduced computer use when I took voluntary redundancy. The really ironic thing is that the carpal tunnel got worse (permanent pins & needles and loss of strength) when I started digging my allotment - so it didn't seem to be all that related to computer use at all. As I'd stopped work I didn't need time off, but I was back trying to dig after about two-three weeks. Felt surprisingly useless for quite a while, but hand feels really good now. I still have mild occassional night symptoms on the other side, but not worth doing anything about yet (& hopefully ever).

I didn't have nerve conduction test by the way, but had a positive Falens (think that's how you spell it) test and some other test that I can't remember the name of and classic symptoms in the hand.

snorkle, i am diagnosed with bilateral cts. Now you have recovered, would you recommend the op or not? Not sure how I will survive as obviously not going to be able to type for a while.

I'm glad I had it done. The pain at night was keeping me awake and quite distressing sometimes. If you leave it too long you do risk irreperable nerve damage and consequent weakness - my consultant reckoned that by the time you get constant symptoms (pin & needles all the time) and some noticable loss of strength then you would have already lost a good percentage of the nerve supply. However because you have more than you need it's still possible to make a full recovery with the surgery, but it's not a good idea to leave it much longer than that.

I know people who have had both sides done at once - that would leave you really incapacitated, but the advantage is that it gets it all over with. Others have one side done first and the other a few months later. The surgery is unpleasant & one person told me if she hadn't had both sides done together she wouldn't have been brave enough to go back for the other (but I expect the pain would drive you back eventually). I don't know anyone who regrets having it done - the surgery has a high success rate.

Hello,

See a good acupuncturist as soon as you can. It should clear up after a couple of sessions.

I have been seeing a myofascial practitioner and have only had one session so it is difficult to tell at the moment if it is giving any relief. I have had some acupuncuture although if anybody had had this condition and has had relief through any alternative therapy I would be willing to give it a go.

Cornwallabroad - have you had experence of CTS? Thank you for your support.

Hairycaterpillar - good luck with the surgeon. Please let me know how it goes. Fingers crossed for you that it goes ok. My nerve conduction test was mild. I dont tend to wear splints at night (I did at one point) as I am not waking up anymore but finding my grip has changed but the pain has moved up my arms now..

Bellavita - how long did it take your mum to recover? How long was she off work for?

Thank you for your support.

Snorkle i am a accountant and therefore rely on my hands an awful lot. How long would you think i would be off work for if i had the operation?

Oooooooh it's horrid. I had it after having DS1 in my wrists, and could not pick up my baby when he cried in the night until "they came back to life" or DH picked him up for me.

I had forgotten all about it until this thread ! I was given some wrist slings and it cleared up completely after about 6 months. No idea what caused it or what cured it but definitely seemed to be pregnancy related. So generally not very helpful !

I am going to see my surgeon next month to discuss having the op for CPT, i have tried quite a few of the injections with no sucsess, i hate that i can't pick my kids up and i hate that everyone thinks im really clumsy when i drop things all the time.

Can anyone tell me about the OP is it unger LA or GA? WHat do they do and what do they say about recovery times?

I have been discussing a slightly different op on my left wrist as they think that i have a band of hard tissue growing round the CPT nerve where i had a bad braek as a child. Hopefully the right wrist will be strieght forward though.

I sympathise though it hurts and it is life effecting and it is (in my case) disabling and it makes me bloody miserable.

OP is under a local anasthetic which is the bit that hurts most. I was told it would be like a bee sting, but I thought it was worse (it also didn't completely work properly as I could feel pain when he cut the tendon). I had the open release surgery which has a longer recovery time than the keyhole surgery (which you have seems to be determined by surgeons preference). At a guess I'd say a minimum of 2-3 weeks off work, maybe more. The Bupa Website has some good info on it including an animation of what they actually do. They are a bit evasive about recovery times - my surgeon said it varies quite a bit - some people heal quicker than others.

I hadn't realised it was done under LA snorkle...that really puts me off. I had heard the outcomes are not always that great so good to hear some success stories!

I see the surgeon on thursday and am actually quite nervous...don't want the operation but soooo fed up with symptoms. I struggled with a full teapot at the weekend and nearly dropped it which scared me a bit.

Good luck with the consultant hairycaterpillar. I know the symptoms are horrid & I really do think the surgery is well worth it to be rid of them. I know the LA is nervewraking, but it is better for you really. Forgot to mention you have to have a torniquet which hurts too. As I said it's not pleasant, but the whole op only lasts about 8 mins. If you survived childbirth it's not really any worse.